1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an electric vacuum cleaner, and particularly to an electric vacuum cleaner having a cyclone-type dust collector that separates dust with a whirling air flow produced from air sucked in.
2. Description of the Prior Art
A conventionally known type of electric vacuum cleaner has a cyclone dust collector that separates dust with a whirling air flow produced from air sucked in by driving an electric blower. FIG. 49 is a diagram schematically showing a conventional example of such an electric cleaner. A nozzle unit 4 has a nozzle 4a that faces a floor surface F, and, to this nozzle unit 4, a connection pipe 3 is connected. To the connection pipe 3, a cyclone dust collector 5 is coupled.
The cyclone dust collector 5 communicates with a main body 1 of the electric vacuum cleaner having an electric blower 1 a through a coupling member 10 and a suction hose 2, thereby forming a suction air passage. Part of the coupling member 10 is bent so as to form a handle 10a to be held by the user. On the handle 10a is provided an operation portion log having operation keys with which to control the operation of the electric vacuum cleaner, a display for indicating the operation status thereof, and the like.
When the electric blower 1a is driven, air is sucked in through the nozzle 4a of the nozzle unit 4 as indicated by arrow f1, and the air thus introduced flows through the connection pipe 3 into the cyclone dust collector 5 through an inlet 5a thereof. Inside the cyclone dust collector 5, the air is turned into a whirling air flow by which dust is separated and removed from the air. Thereafter, by the suction force of the electric blower 1a, the air is exhausted out of the main body 1 of the electric vacuum cleaner as indicated by arrow f2.
FIGS. 50, 51, and 52 are a perspective view, a vertical sectional view, and a horizontal sectional view, respectively, showing the details of the cyclone dust collector 5. The cyclone dust collector 5 has, in an upper portion thereof, a suction air guide 20 having the inlet 5a formed therethrough, and is coupled to the connection pipe 3 through this suction air guide 20. The cyclone dust collector 5 is substantially cylindrical in shape, and is arranged parallel to the connection pipe 3. The introduced air flows into the cyclone dust collector 5 through the inlet 5a in the direction of a line tangent to the inner wall 5c of the cyclone dust collector 5.
The coupling member 10 has a coupling pipe 10b formed integrally therewith. The coupling pipe 10b has a closed end surface 10c at one end, and, at this end, reaches into the cyclone dust collector 5. In the peripheral surface of the coupling pipe 10b is formed, in a position lower than the inlet 5a, an outlet 5b through which the introduced air is exhausted out of the cyclone dust collector 5. The outlet 5b is fitted with a mesh filter having a large number of through holes.
Inside the suction air guide 20 is provided a valve 13 formed out of an elastic material such as rubber. The vacuum pressure of the introduced air bends this valve 13 in the direction of the flow of the air, and this causes the air that flows in through the inlet 5a to flow in the direction of a line tangent to the cyclone dust collector 5 as shown in FIG. 52. As a result, the introduced air collides with the inner wall 5c of the cyclone dust collector 5 and is thereby turned into a whirling air flow, of which the centrifugal force separates dust and collects it in a first dust collection chamber 7.
When no air is being sucked in, the valve 13, by its own elasticity, keeps the inlet 5a closed so as to prevent backflow of dust. This prevents the collected dust from scattering around, for example, when the electric vacuum cleaner is stored away.
Under the first dust collection chamber 7 is provided, substantially coaxially therewith, a second dust collection chamber 8, with a partition wall 9 arranged in between. As shown in FIG. 53, the partition wall 9 has an opening 9a formed therein, and this opening 9a is fitted with a mesh filter having a large number of through holes. The filter is formed out of mesh of resin such as a nylon-based resin, mesh of metal, or the like, and is fixed to the partition wall 9 by double molding, welding, or bonding. Fine particles of dust pass through the filter of the opening 9a and are collected in the second dust collection chamber 8.
The dust that flows into the cyclone dust collector 5 as air is sucked in by driving the electric blower la contains very fine particles. Such fine particles of dust are extremely light, and therefore cannot be separated by the centrifugal force of the whirling air flow produced in the cyclone dust collector. Thus, when the introduced air is exhausted through the outlet 5b, fine particles of dust are caught on the filter of the outlet 5b, and, as a result, this filter becomes clogged. In this case, the clogged portion of the filter exerts resistance to the air passing through the outlet 5b, and thereby makes the obtained suction force lower than is expected from the output of the electric blower 1a, leading to lower dust suction efficiency.
Much of the dust caught at the outlet 5b remains there even after the electric blower a stops being driven. Consequently, unless the electric vacuum cleaner is subjected to clearing on a regular basis, every time it is operated, dust collects and the clogging of the filter as described above lowers dust suction efficiency accordingly. That is, regular maintenance, such as the cleaning of the outlet 5b, is indispensable, which requires much time and trouble.
In addition, the outlet 5b is formed in the coupling pipe 10b that reaches into the cyclone dust collector 5, and thus is not easily detachable from the cyclone dust collector 5. This makes it difficult to keep the outlet 5b well-maintained by cleaning or the like. Hence, an attempt to clean the outlet 5b caked with dust by rubbing it with cloth or the like tends to leave not only the fingers and hands of the user but also the floor surface soiled and thus unhygienic with dust that has fallen off. Moreover, giving the outlet 5b a through cleaning takes considerable time and trouble, which makes the electric vacuum cleaner unsatisfactory in terms of user-friendliness.
Moreover, when relatively coarse pieces of dust, such as pieces of paper, collect in the first dust collection chamber 7, they may partially or totally clog the filter fitted in the opening 9a of the partition wall 9, hindering fine pieces of dust from being collected sufficiently in the second dust collection chamber 8. In this case, when the electric vacuum cleaner is operated next time, the dust left in the first dust collection chamber 7 is blown up by the whirling air flow produced in the cyclone dust collector 5. As a result, fine particles of dust are more likely to be caught at the outlet 5b as described above.
An object of the present invention is to provide an electric vacuum cleaner that permits easy maintenance, as in the cleaning of a filter disposed in a suction air passage, and in particular an electric vacuum cleaner of a cyclone type that separates dust with centrifugal force produced in a dust collector portion thereof and that permits easy maintenance of a filter provided at an outlet of the dust collector portion.
To achieve the above object, according to one aspect of the present invention, in an electric vacuum cleaner provided with a nozzle unit having a nozzle, an electric blower for producing a suction air flow, a suction air passage running between the nozzle unit and the electric blower, and a cyclone dust collector arranged in the suction air passage for separating dust from the suction air flow by turning the suction air flow that flows into the cyclone dust collector into a whirling air flow, the cyclone dust collector is provided with a removable exhaust tube that permits the suction air flow to flow to the downstream side of the suction air passage.
In this arrangement, the exhaust tube can be detached from the cyclone dust collector, and thus it is easy to maintain the exhaust tube. It is possible even to clean the exhaust tube with water.
According to another aspect of the present invention, in an electric vacuum cleaner provided with a nozzle unit having a nozzle, an electric blower for producing a suction air flow, a suction air passage running between the nozzle unit and the electric blower, and a cyclone dust collector arranged in the suction air passage for separating dust from the suction air flow by turning the suction air flow that flows into the cyclone dust collector into a whirling air flow, the cyclone dust collector is provided with a dust collection chamber for collecting separated dust, and the dust collection chamber is divided into a first compartment closer to where the suction air flow enters the dust collection chamber and a second compartment farther from where the suction air flow enters the dust collection chamber with a partition wall having an opening and arranged along the direction in which the suction air flow whirls around.
In this arrangement, the separated dust is transferred through the opening formed in the partition wall to the second compartment farther from where the suction air flow flows in, and this helps alleviate the mixing of the already collected dust with the suction air flow. This dust collection chamber has a simple structure, and is thus easy to maintain.
According to another aspect of the present invention, in an electric vacuum cleaner provided with a nozzle unit having a nozzle, an electric blower for producing a suction air flow, a suction air passage running between the nozzle unit and the electric blower, and a cyclone dust collector arranged in the suction air passage for separating dust from the suction air flow by turning the suction air flow that flows into the cyclone dust collector into a whirling air flow, the cyclone dust collector is provided with a detachable dust collection chamber for collecting separated dust and a holding mechanism for detachably holding the dust collection chamber.
In this arrangement, the dust collection chamber is detachable, and is thus easy to maintain. In addition, the provision of the holding mechanism helps prevent unexpected detachment of the dust collection chamber.
According to another aspect of the present invention, an electric vacuum cleaner provided with a nozzle unit having a nozzle, an electric blower for producing a suction air flow, a suction air passage running between the nozzle unit and the electric blower, and a separator arranged in the suction air passage for separating dust from the suction air flow is further provided with: a detachable dust collection chamber that communicates with the separator and in which separated dust is collected; a filter through which the suction air flow from the separator passes to flow to the downstream side of the suction air passage; and cleaning means that cleans the filter in a manner interlocked with the movement of the dust collection chamber as the dust collection chamber is attached and detached.
In this arrangement, the filter is cleaned automatically every time the dust collection chamber is attached and detached. This makes it easy to maintain the filter.
According to another aspect of the present invention, an electric vacuum cleaner provided with a nozzle unit having a nozzle, an electric blower for producing a suction air flow, a suction air passage running between the nozzle unit and the electric blower, and a separator arranged in the suction air passage for separating dust from the suction air flow is further provided with: a detachable dust collection chamber that functions as the separator and in which separated dust is collected; an exhaust tube that has an outlet, fitted with a filter, formed in a peripheral surface thereof, that is inserted into the dust collection chamber through an opening formed in a wall of the dust collection chamber in such a way that the outlet is located inside the dust collection chamber, and that permits the suction air flow from the dust collection chamber to flow through the outlet to the downstream side of the dust suction passage; and cleaning means provided at the rim of the opening of the dust collection chamber for cleaning the filter.
In this arrangement also, the provision of the cleaning means makes it easy to maintain the filter. The exhaust tube may be fixed to the suction air passage, or may be fitted to the dust collection chamber. It is possible to additionally provide guiding means for guiding the attachment and detachment of the dust collection chamber.
According to another aspect of the present invention, an electric vacuum cleaner provided with a nozzle unit having a nozzle, an electric blower for producing a suction air flow, a suction air passage running between the nozzle unit and the electric blower, and a cyclone dust collector arranged in the suction air passage for separating dust from the suction air flow by turning the suction air flow that flows into the cyclone dust collector into a whirling air flow is further provided with: compressing means for compressing dust collected inside the cyclone dust collector.
In this arrangement, it is possible to secure a free space in the dust collector simply by compressing the collected dust. This helps reduce the frequency with which the collected dust needs to be disposed of In addition, since the collected dust is compressed, it is less likely to scatter around.
According to another aspect of the present invention, in an electric vacuum cleaner provided with a nozzle unit having a nozzle, an electric blower for producing a suction air flow, a suction air passage running between the nozzle unit and the electric blower, and a cyclone dust collector arranged in the suction air passage for separating dust from the suction air flow by turning the suction air flow that flows into the cyclone dust collector into a whirling air flow, the cyclone dust collector is provided with: an exhaust tube having an outlet, fitted with a filter, formed in a peripheral surface thereof so as to permit the suction air flow to flow through the outlet to the downstream side of the suction air passage; and cleaning means that cleans the filter by exploiting the force of the suction air flow that is flowing out of the exhaust tube.
In this arrangement, the filter is cleaned all the time, and is thus easy to maintain.
According to another aspect of the present invention, an electric vacuum cleaner provided with a nozzle unit having a nozzle, an electric blower for producing a suction air flow, a suction air passage running between the nozzle unit and the electric blower, and a separator arranged in the suction air passage for separating dust from the suction air flow is further provided with: a dust collection chamber that communicates with the separator and in which separated dust is collected; an exhaust tube having an outlet, fitted with a filter, formed in a peripheral surface thereof so as to permit the suction air flow to flow from the separator through the outlet to the downstream side of the suction air passage; and a cleaning member that moves while keeping contact with the filter and thereby cleans the filter.
In this arrangement, the filter can be cleaned simply by moving the cleaning member, and is thus easy to maintain. The cleaning member may be moved with a motor, or by exploiting the suction air flow produced by the electric blower, or even through manual operation.